Category: 1 Corinthians

Take a moment to read 1 Corinthians 15:35-58 before reading the devotional below.

Do you ever wonder why we’re here on this earth? And what happens when we die? Is there really such a thing as eternal life? As we mentioned in an earlier post, not all early Christians believed in resurrection. No afterlife, no heaven. This was not the good news of Jesus, so Paul is correcting their theology in this letter. One of the biggest issues with the afterlife was that some couldn’t quite picture it — “Okay, if we are resurrected, what do our bodies look like?”

Paul turns this question upside-down and calls it ridiculous. Talk about missing the point. He uses the metaphor of a seed and a plant, which is a pretty awesome description of how to think about your eternal life. The difference between a seed and a full-grown tree is pretty big! That’s how much you can’t imagine what eternity is like with God.

Here’s your freedom for today:

You are becoming someone amazing.

If who you are now is only a tiny seed of who you are becoming, what do you imagine might be possible for you in eternity? When a seed dies, that is when real life can spring forth and the seed’s ultimate purpose is realized. You were made for heaven. You are becoming someone amazing — almost incomprehensible to you now. No part of you is ever wasted, and everything you do that has eternal value will be the soil you grow into.

Take a moment to read 1 Corinthians 16 before reading the devotional below.

In this final chapter of 1 Corinthians, Paul is wrapping up and giving instructions for how they should receive coming missionaries. He talks about his plans loosely, always willing to say that his steps are determined by God. We also find out that Paul did not physically write his own letter, but instead dictated it to a scribe of some sort. In verse 21 the handwriting changes and Paul’s large, messy scrawl is apparent in the original letter.

Let’s zoom in on verses 13 and 14. These brief verses have a feel of urgency to them, laid right in the middle of a variety of practical instructions. “Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. And do everything with love.” Paul is summing up the entire letter here, and it’s a great reminder of how we are to live the Christian life. Stay in the supernatural battle. Don’t forget the Gospel. Take spiritual risks. And just in case you have forgotten, if you don’t love then the whole thing is useless.

Here’s your freedom for today:

You can go beyond the ordinary.

There are so many books, movies, and themes of humanity that revolve around stepping out into another type of world to do something brave. These plots have the ordinary people doing their mundane thing, but behind that is a world that has much more at stake. Paul’s words here remind us that choosing to follow Jesus carries you into a world that is far beyond ordinary. Battles are fought and wars lost and won. You were made for more. You have supernatural weapons, the most powerful one being love. Is this what you think about when you wake up in the morning? Is this how you are living your life? Don’t settle for ordinary — step into something bigger.